Definitions

There are generally recognizable terms in the publishing business for different categories of editing assistance. While these may vary slightly from editor to editor, here are the ways I use these terms.

Substantive Editing

This type of editing is a thorough analysis of your entire manuscript with the goal of improvement in any or all of these areas:

overall clarity or accuracy

reorganization of paragraphs, sections, or chapters to improve the order of the text’s presentation

improvement of readability and/or flow of information

suggestions for improvement of text related to expectations of the genre or sub-genre of writing

effectiveness of the order of individual components, for instance, ordering of poems within a manuscript

Developmental Editing

The goal of this type of editing is to either define or redefine the vision for a particular book project. This may include any or all of the following:

respond to a manuscript-in-progress in terms of the effectiveness of overall approach for a particular audience

respond to a manuscript in terms of content, organization, and presentation based on an analysis of similar works

respond to a particular manuscript’s potential placement in a specific market

Copyediting

This type of editing focuses on grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other mechanics of style. It also includes the check for internal fact consistency and the consistency of the document’s mechanisms, such as abbreviations, chapter headings, table of contents, glossary, and other manuscript components.

Proofreading

This involves reading proofs (usually called “galleys”) of an edited manuscript. This generally includes the checking of page numbers, page references, table of contents, and page breaks along with a thorough checking of spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

Rewriting

This type of work involves creating a new manuscript or parts of a manuscript on the basis of the author’s content and/or research. This may include additional research.

Other Services

I would be delighted to discuss other projects that you wish to have done. Since I’ve been published in many genres (fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, children’s, young adult, and magazines), I can help you with many different projects. I keep my fingers on the pulse of many types of publishing and am available for consultation.